Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the wonderful world my characters live in, all that is part of the brilliant mind of our personal queen, JK Rowling. I don't own Beauty and the Beast either, that credit goes to either Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve or Jeanne-Marie Le Prince de Beaumont

Draco’s POV:

I’d never truly been as upset with myself and my actions until now. There had been those moments, especially after I had abandoned that whole Slytherin mind set- or tried to at least- that I was still rude to Hermione and her friends and I’d regretted it, but not like I did now. I suppose the thing that upset me most was that this time she hadn’t hated me… she’d trusted me.

I made my way back to my room, my mind still playing the day’s events over and over again.

Everything had gone “according to plan”. We’d managed to find and rescue the cat and I had been able to get her home in one piece… for the most part. I could still feel her heart aching, or maybe it was mine.

I opened my door and walked in, wanting to lay down somewhere before I did something rash. There was a crack from behind me and for a hopeful, fleeing moment I thought it was Dinky, asking me to go see Hermione.

I took an involuntary step back when I saw “X” standing in the back corner near my dresser, eying the rose placed on it.

“Get out!” I hissed, not in the mood to deal with or listen to her at the moment.

“Oh come now, Draco,” she said, giving me an almost puppy dog look, or at least her attempt at one. “Be polite. I’m a guest after all.”

She snapped and a table with two chairs appeared in the center of the room.

“How did you get in?” I asked suddenly. No one but a Malfoy was able to apparate directly within the grounds of Malfoy Manor.

“Ahh… what a good question. Why don’t you sit down?” she asked, gesturing to the chair across from her.

Hesitantly, I made my way over to the table, slowly pulling out the chair and sitting down.

“Well, dear, I can see she’s hurting. The edges of the petals are looking to be almost bruised. A blow to the heart… what happened?” she asked, seeming to stare at me as if in search of some emotional response.

“Nothing happened,” I said, though a little voice in the back of my head was telling me lying to her would be no use.

“I… I don’t want to talk about it. Everything happened today and I-”

“Draco!” Came a voice from the door, followed by a sharp knock. “It’s time for dinner!”

“I’ll be out in a minute, mother!” I said, standing up and turning back to speak to the woman.

When I turned I gasped slightly upon seeing that the tables, chairs, and “X” herself had vanished.

A piece of paper came fluttering down from the ceiling and I bent down slowly to pick it up.

I’ll be back

-X

I crumpled it up and tossed it behind me, just wanting to get this dinner over with, not wanting to dwell on the thought of her returning.

I sighed and made my way from the room, already dreading the night ahead.

~*~*~

Hermione’s POV:

I wanted to break something. I wanted to yell and kick and scream and somehow release all this pain that had taken up residence in my heart.

It was so unlike me and I couldn’t believe I was feeling all these things; I’d never been at this level of frustration in my life and I didn’t know how to handle it.

I had been fooled on so many levels and I couldn’t even put words to my frustration.

Crookshanks meowed from behind me and I was snapped out of my little world of anger. The spell was broken and I took a deep breath, bending down to scratch him behind his ear.

I went back to the task I’d set out to do, retrieving the food and water dishes. I pulled them from the bag, making my way to the bathroom and placing them in front of the sink cabinets, off to the left.

Grabbing one of the bowls, I filled it up using the tap and placed it back on the ground. Crookshanks immediately sat down in front of it and began drinking.

I walked back to the room, grabbing his food and returning to the bowls to fit it. As soon as the food began tinkling in the bottom of the bowl, Crookshanks meowed and looked at me with an almost patient look in his eyes.

Realizing I needed to set up his litter box, I went back to the room and retried Narcissa’s bag.

While walking back to the bathroom, I rummaged around in the bag in search of the litter box.

I finally found it and pulled it out, trying to decide where to place it. I looked at the litter box and attempted to decipher how the whole self-cleaning thing worked.

I found a small compartment in the back that held a tiny scooper, but my eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. I still didn’t understand.

After I set the litter box down a few feet away from the toilet and Narcissa’s bag on the ground before reaching in with both hands in search of the bag of litter.

Upon finding it, I wrapped both hands around the sides and lifted, nearly topping over when I pulled it from the bag.

I sat on the ground with a grunt, dropping the bag next to me. Why we got a fifty-pound bag of litter, I’d never know. I was regretting it already.

I stood up and took a deep breath, brushing curls from my face and tearing open the top of the bag. The smell of pine instantly met my nose and I couldn’t help but smile. Pine had always reminded me of Christmas.

Thinking about Christmas, however didn’t make me very happy. The first thought I had was about my parents and I instantly felt a tug at my heart.

I had no idea if I would see my parents again, let alone if I’d ever share another Christmas or holiday with them. I blinked away the tears as I awkwardly lifted the bag and filled the box a little more than halfway.

I folded the top of the bag down and shuffled my way across the bathroom with it, opening the cabinet below the sink and sliding it under.

I grabbed a hand towel and brought it back over to the litter box, placing an inch or so under the front of the box so that Crookshanks would have something to wipe his paws on and wouldn’t track the litter all over the bathroom.

After standing up and glancing around, I was happy with where I’d placed his things among the spacious bathroom and I decided it was time for a bath.

I made my way up the stairs and kneeled next to the faucet handles, noticing each had an engraving. From left to right they read: Water, Temperature, Drain, Pain Relief, Relaxation, Worry Relief, and Bubbles I couldn’t help but laugh as I read the last one. Really, Malfoy? Bubbles?

I sighed and turned the first one on, smiling as water began to fill the tub. I fiddled with the temperature knob, testing the water every few seconds until I found a suitable temperature. I pulled up on the drain handle followed by the relaxation and bubbles before I slowly rose, making my way down the stairs to grab my things.

I grabbed the purple bathrobe and realized that it was all I would need considering I would have to take a shower afterwards to rinse off the suds. I noticed something purple off to the side of the tub and couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of a set of slippers that seemed to be made of the same towel material as the robe, so I wouldn’t slip on the marble.

Slipping them on and ascending the stairs, I couldn’t help but wonder when he’d had them purchased or what his thoughts were when getting them for me.

The bath was nearly full as I slipped off the slippers and placed the robe on top, pulling off the rest of my clothes as well. I tested the water with my toes and found that it was utterly perfect. I slid in slowly as the warmth spread through my whole body and couldn’t help but let out a sigh.

Crookshanks meowed from below me and I watched as he made his way over to the litter box. He sniffed it a few times before using it and wiping his paws on the towel I'd placed in front of the litter box.

As he walked away, a scooper came out from behind the litter box and scooped up the wet litter before a bag appeared and dumped the contents from the scooper into the bag. The bag then tied itself and flew across the room, dropping into the small trashcan near the sinks. So that was how the self-scooper worked. I smirked to myself as I slid back down into the warm water.

I must have spent the better part of an hour in the bath because the next thing I knew, I heard my bedroom door open and a woman’s voice calling for me

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